Housing Champions win at the ballot box!

This year’s election was great for housing champions! With housing and homelessness a major focal point in the election this year, the people have spoken in favor of compassionate housing and homelessness strategies.

In the 40th legislative district serving San Juan county and parts of Whatcom and Skagit counties, Liz Lovelett won her race to retain her seat as State Legislator. Jeanne Kohl-Welles will continue to fight for housing justice on the King County council.

Despite unprecedented spending by CASE (the Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce’s PAC) and Amazon for candidates that would have moved Seattle away from housing justice and effective, compassionate solutions to homelessness, we have a fantastic new Seattle City Council! Lisa Herbold and Debora Juarez retained their seats, and Andrew Lewis, Dan Strauss and Tammy Morales will join them to form a council ready for housing justice work! For Burien city council, both of our endorsed candidates, Sofia Aragon and Kevin Schilling won. And in Tacoma, Keith Blocker, Conor McCarthy, and Kristina Walker won in their races for city council! Plus, the Just Cause initiative in Federal way passed, ensuring that no Federal Way resident will be evicted from their home without a reason!

However, it wasn’t all wins. Tim Eyman’s car tabs initiative, I-976, passed, gutting transportation projects, and putting massive strain on the state’s budget. Also, referendum 88 was narrowly defeated, maintaining the ban on affirmative action in Washington. Ben Stuckart lost in his race for mayor of Spokane, and Sarah Nuanes lost in her race for mayor of Mount Vernon. For Seattle City Council, Shaun Scott and Jim Pugel lost in their races (however we did dual endorse in Pugel’s race, where Andrew Lewis won), and for Tacoma City Council Nathe Lawver also failed to win.

But all in all, this year has been filled with important wins that will make a real impact for the residents of Washington state, and we’re energized to continue our work towards everyone having a safe, healthy, and affordable home.

About Us

The Washington Housing Alliance Action Fund educates voters, promotes smart public policy, and supports candidates who share our vision that all Washington residents have the opportunity to live in safe, healthy, affordable homes, in thriving communities.